By: Bill Willingham Publisher: Vertigo Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Vertigo Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 128 Publication Date: August 01, 2003 Release Date: August 01, 2003
Willingham Switches It Up I've only read two volumes of "Fables." The first volume and now this. While it can't be said that this book, "Animal Farm," was as good as the first one, Bill Willingham is an awesome writer simply for the way he switches things up. The first volume of this series was a traditional mystery,complete with a parlor scene at the end. This takes on a completely different genre, falling somewhere between adventure/thriller and war/revolution story.
Willingham also uses this book to flesh out his Fable mythology. The first book informed the reader that the Fables that couldn't pass for human lived on a sort of farm land up state, and the majority of this book takes place up there. We get to see Willingham and artist Buckingham's take on the animal and legendary-beast Fables, which ranges from pretty straight forward (Shere Khan the villainous tiger) to really surprising and innovative (the Three Little Pigs). There are literary references and nods to the original fables all around, which makes this a very loaded book, but it never really recaptured the intrigue of the first one.
All in all, despite being slightly less captivating than Volume One, this is a good addition to the "Fables" series and will certainly keep me reading.
PS: This volume includes bonus character sketches and a cover gallery in the back.
7/10
Some rough action I was not sure if I should buy this collection after I read first one (Legends in Exile). But then I thought that the first one is a mere introduction to the world and characters - and I bought this one.
Second collection introduces even more characters and shows another location. But it also shows that this series is not about melodrama and nostalgia. It has some radical action and it looks into the "politics" as a system.
I love the premise of this series! The continuing adventures of the inhabitants of Fabletown, Bill Willingham's Fables series continues in the second story arc, Animal Farm. With the more "un"-human occupants of Fabletown not being able to live in NYC with those that can pass as human, they have moved into the Fabletown extension in upstate New York called the Farm. Feeling they are being treated unfairly, they decide to rebel against the rules and regulations of Fabletown to try and make it back to their homelands, until one of their number decides to take things too far.
I continue to be impressed with this series. Bill Willingham is able to create ties between seemingly unrelated fairy tales and fables and create one of the most original stories I've seen in comics in a long time.
This particular volume I felt fell a little bit from the strong beginning of the first volume, Legends in Exile and the prelude volume 1001 Nights of Snowfall, but I still enjoyed it all the same. Looking forward to continuing reading this series.
It works. I'm not quite sure how or why, but it works This series supposes that the mythical beings from our childhood fairy tales not only exist, but have been forced to flee their native land - arriving in New York City. Some, Snow White for example, can trade her princess' gown for a business suit and get by just fine in the city. Tom Thumb, the talkative three little pigs, and quite a few others would blow the secrecy of their exile in our world. So, the Fables (as the displaced ones call themselves) establish a refuge in a distant corner of upstate New York where the more unusual beings can live in peace and privacy.
But being run out of their hereditary lands galls them, and their isolation and the limits on their freedom chafe. The rhetoric builds up, instigated by Goldilocks (who still finds Baby Bear's bed just right) but pushed forward by the pigs - who suddenly seem to read from George Orwell's script. They're as venal and brutal as Orwell's, but better armed.
The rest of the story carries through on the promise made by the beginning. It offers excitement, imagination, and enough twists and turns to keep the ending in suspense. Well, if not the ending itself, at least the way it comes about. Capable, expressive artwork supports the writing well, even if it doesn't break any new ground. Since a different look in the artwork is usually what grabs my attention, it took me a long time to pick this one up. That was my mistake. You don't have to repeat it. Go ahead, enjoy this grown-up take on some of your childhood favorites.
-- wiredweird
Goldilock isn't so sweet! Just when you thought the 3 Little Pigs were the victims, you get a whole new show with Fables 2. And Goldilocks just so happens to be bonkers and armed. Good thing all the characters at the Farm aren't ready for a Civil War. Best one of the bunch.
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